a clause that does not express a complete thought and is not a sentence; it depends upon something else to express a complete thought.
a clause in a complex sentence that cannot stand alone as a complete sentence and that functions within the sentence as a noun or adjective or adverb
a clause that is embedded as a constituent of a matrix sentence and that functions like a noun , adjective , or adverb in the resultant complex sentence
a clause that supports ideas stated in the main clause
a clause which is subordinate to another clause
a sentence-like group of words (containing a subject and a verb) that functions as a word in another grammatical structure--in a sentence, clause, or phrase
a sentence within a sentence
a subordinate clause does not express a complete idea and cannot stand alone. It must be joined to a main clause with a semi-colon, adverbial connector or subordinating conjunction
A subordinate clause is an embedded clause found in a larger matrix (or compound) sentence.
A clause with an adjectival, nominal or adverbial function, unable to serve as a sentence in its own right. (Also known as a dependant clause.)
A clause that modifies or expands on other clauses. A subordinate clause modifies or expands on another clause. It cannot stand alone, as that he gave in The account that he gave was true.
A subordinate clause occurs at a lower level than some other clause. For example, in I'll clean the bathroom if you clean the lounge, the if-clause is subordinate to the clause I'll clean the bathroom. Further subordinate clauses we distinguish are: relative clauses, that-clauses, small clauses, - ed participle clauses, - ing participle clauses, to-infinitive clauses, bare infinitive clauses, and comparative clauses. See also
